What Is Swim Bladder "Disease"?

Swim bladder "disease" is also known as swim bladder disorder or SBD, and is a symptom instead of an actual disease. If it is present, it could be for a number of reasons, so the focus should be on identifying the underlying cause for the symptom. For example, a swim bladder disorder can be caused by:

Physical injury, such as if the fish is dropped or handled too roughly

Shock (a sudden change in water temperature can cause some fish to swim strangely)

Stress

Constipation

Tumor

Birth defect

Bacterial or parasitic infection

It is believed that doubletail betta varieties are more prone to swim bladder disorder than single-tail bettas because of their shorter bodies.

Symptoms of a Swim Bladder Problem

The symptoms for swim bladder disorder varies. However, some of the common symptoms you should watch for include the following:

Difficulty swimming resulting in the fish floating horizontally near the surface.

Difficulty staying afloat resulting in the fish laying on the bottom of the aquarium.

Swimming upside down.

An ‘S’ shaped spine (also a potential sign of TB, so be extremely careful when handling the fish and its setup).

How to Treat a Swim Bladder Problem

1. Assess the water quality.

Test your water parameters! Is ammonia or nitrite present at all? Is there 40ppm nitrate or more? If so, you need to get those levels down with water changes. Even a steady reading of 0.25ppm ammonia can cause permanent damage to your pet.

To see exactly where you stand with water quality, be sure to pick up a liquid water testing kit, such as the API Master Freshwater Test Kit. Don’t bother with strip tests! They’re notoriously inaccurate.

Before moving onto Epsom salt or medicine, be sure to try doing large water changes (around 50%) daily first. Ensuring pristine water conditions should always be done first before medicating. Sometimes, just keeping up with your water changes alone is enough to prevent health problems from getting worse.

2. Remove the betta fish from the main aquarium.

If you have one, you should move your betta into a quarantine tank with clean, conditioned water (with proper acclimation). If your betta can't swim up to the surface easily, whether they are in the main tank or QT, be sure to reduce the water level to make it easier for the fish to reach the surface and breathe. You can also add more plants to make it easier for your betta to rest at the surface. Having plants at the surface also allow bettas that tip to their sides to prop themselves up properly by wedging and leaning.

Depending on the size of the QT and if you're medicating the fish, you may be required to do daily water changes anywhere from 20-100%.

If your tank isn’t a community tank, you can choose to treat in the main tank. However, just be aware that any medications used may affect beneficial bacteria in the aquarium. You’ll still need to keep up with your water changes as well.

3. Fast the sick fish. Overfeeding betta fish or giving them food that has low moisture content commonly causes swim bladder problems through bloating and constipation. To help potentially correct the problem, it is recommended to fast the sick betta fish for 24-48 hours. After this period, you should closely monitor the feedings to ensure that you are not overfeeding the fish in general and causing bloating. It is also handy to know that some bettas are more prone to constipation than others, and dietary changes may help relieve the symptoms. Many owners recommend also feeding your sick betta fish a frozen pea that has been thawed and skinned. However, there is controversy about the method and I personally don't recommend it. 4. Use Epsom salt. If fasting doesn't work, you can try adding 1 teaspoon of Epsom salt per gallon into the QT to help relieve pressure. It's very important that you completely dissolve the Epsom salt in a separate container first before gradually adding it into QT. If you don't, the undissolved grains can burn your betta's scales.

You will need to do 100% changes every day when Epsom salt is present, although 2-3 days of treatment should be all that you need. Do not exceed 10 consecutive days of treatment with Epsom salt.

You can also opt to give a couple of Epsom salt baths a day instead. To do so, you will need a separate container of clean, conditioned water with 1 tablespoon of Epsom salt per gallon. Once the Epsom salt is fully dissolved in the container and the temperature is ideal, you can place your betta into the bath for 10-15 minutes.

After the time is up, it is recommended to transfer the betta to a recovery/reviving station that is 3/4 clean, conditioned water and 1/4 the Epsom salt solution you used. After a few minutes in the recovery station, you can return the fish to its QT (with proper acclimation).

5. Use antibiotics. If you do not see an improvement after improving the water quality, fasting your sick fish, and/or treating with Epsom salt, you may be dealing with an internal bacterial or parasitic infection (or an injury). Unfortunately, bacterial and parasitic infections can cause a list of other symptoms and secondary illnesses, such as:

Lethargy

Colour loss

Loss of appetite

Septicemia (redness beneath the scales)

Popeye (protruding of an eye or eyes)

Columnaris (a common bacterial infection often known as “false” fungus because it has patchy white growth that can be mistaken for a fungal infection)

Fin rot (deterioration of fins)

When administering an antibiotic treatment for an infection, you can use meds such as Seachem Kanaplex or API Triple Sulfa for symptoms of external bacterial infections. For internal bacterial infections, you can try soaking food in said medicines or look for fish food that’s specifically been medicated. When using meds in the tank, be sure to remove the active carbon, otherwise the carbon will filter it all out. It is also important to know that such strong medications should only be used when nothing else seems to be working.

This poor boy featured here (one of my own late bettas named Jack) very likely had tuberculosis that eventually led to his death and the death of two other bettas. As you can clearly see, he exhibited extreme swim bladder issues. He couldn't pull away from the surface of the water and was always on his side. Because of TB, he additionally had secondary bacterial infections, including possible columnaris. In the end, he also developed a bent spine (as well as a yellow discharge from his gills upon the time of death).

I didn't truly know what I was facing so I kept trying to treat his swim bladder issues and secondary infections without fully understanding what the real problem was. Unfortunately, no matter what I did or could've done, there was no "fixing" the problem since TB cannot be cured. Please also note that TB in the hobby is extremely rare. While I did not have my fish tested, many other hobbyists believe that I was dealing with TB as well.

As a side note, the picture featured above is proof that even bettas that are terribly sick and near death can still make bubble nests. Please don't assume that the presence of a bubble nest means that your betta is "happy" and healthy.

How to Potentially Prevent Swim Bladder Problems